1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an information reproducing apparatus for reproducing information recorded on a medium.
2. Related Background Art
A prior art automatic message record telephone apparatus comprises two major units, an out-going message (OGM) sender and an in-coming message (ICM) recorder/reproducer. The automatic message record telephone apparatus is defined as a telephone apparatus at a called party which automatically records a message of a calling party when an operator at the called party is absent.
The OGM sender holds and sends out a response message requesting the calling party to record a message. The response message has been previously recorded in the telephone apparatus when the operator is at home. The ICM recorder/reproducer records and reproduces a message spoken by the calling party in accordance with the response message.
The OGM sender usually uses a voice recording/reproducing IC which records and reproduces voice information by converting analog voice information to digital voice data and storing the latter in a memory.
As the OGM, a message to request to the calling party to record a message such as "I am out now. Please speak your message after you hear a signal tone "see"" is prerecorded in the voice recording/reproducing IC.
On the other hand, as the ICM recorder/reproducer, a tape recorder/reproducer which uses a microcassette tape or a compact cassette tape is frequently used because of long recording time and high quality are required as compared to the OGM.
The operation of the automatic message record telephone apparatus is now explained. When an operator goes out, he/she set the automatic message record telephone apparatus be in an absence mode. When a telephone call is received, the automatic message record telephone apparatus detects the call and sends out the OGM which has previously been recorded by the operator. In order to signal the beginning of the message by the calling party, a signal tone (beep tone) is sent out. At the same time, an ICM record mode is started and the tape is driven so that the ICM of the calling party is recorded on the tape. When the calling party finishes talking, the automatic message record telephone apparatus detects it and completes the record operation of one ICM.
While the telephone apparatus is set in the absence mode, the above operation is repeatedly executed each time a call is received, and the ICM's from the calling parties are sequentially recorded.
In many cases, the operator who is outside the home may hear the ICM's through a telephone set outside the home by a remote control operation.
The operator who is at outside the home sends out a password (ID number) and an operation command via a PB signal (DTMF signal) of the outside telephone set to rewind and fast-feed the tape on which the ICM's from the calling parties have been sequentially recorded and remotely hear the ICM's through the outside telephone set.
Because of the remotely controlled tape operation, a tape position at the end of the remote control operation shifts from the position at the start of the remote control operation. In order to assure that the subsequent ICM record follows the previously recorded ICM as shown in FIG. 6, it is necessary to return the tape position to the position at the start of the remote control operation, that is, the last position in the previous recording.
To this end, in the prior art apparatus, pulse signals generated as a tape reel mount is rotated when the tape is driven are counted or the beep tone signal recorded in the ICM record mode is detected to control the tape position so that the tape is returned to the original position.
However, in the prior art technique in which the rotation of the tape reel mount is detected by counting the pulse signals to control the tape position, if the rotation of the tape reel mount is largely affected by the expansion or shrinkage of the magnetic tape by temperature or humidity, and by ununiform winding tension of the tape by a rotation torque, inconsistency between the rotation of the reel mount and the actual travel distance of the tape increases and precise tape control is difficult to attain.
In the prior art technique in which the beep tone recorded between the ICM's is detected to control the tape position, fast forward feeding and rewinding are carried out while a magnetic head contacts the tape. As a result, the damage to the tape and the wear of the magnetic head are significant. Further, where a sound whose frequency is close to the beep tone signal frequency is included in the ICM, the chance of misdetection is high and proper tape position control is not attained.
Further, the prior art automatic message record telephone apparatus can only reproduce all recorded messages through the remote control operation.
However, where one automatic message record telephone apparatus is shared by more than one person, each co-owner can hear all the messages. Thus, a message which one co-owner does not want to be heard by others is heard by others. This is not desirable from the standpoint of security of secrecy.
On the other hand, it is necessary to hear all messages which the coowner does not want to hear. This results in poor efficiency in time.